The Indian equity market opened Tuesday under a cloud of negativity, with metal stocks leading a decline that pulled down Sensex and Nifty. At around 9:23 AM, Sensex lost 175 points or 0.21% to stand at 83,098, as Nifty dropped 78 points or 0.31% to 25,572. Heavy selling in metals made Nifty Metal and Commodities the day’s top decliners.
Declines cascaded into other segments including Private Banks, Oil & Gas, Financial Services, Realty, Services, Infra, Energy, and PSU Banks. Analysts attribute this to softening global commodity prices and anticipation of weaker corporate earnings in cyclical sectors.
Bright spots emerged in Nifty India Defence, IT, Pharma, and FMCG, which traded higher amid rotational buying. These sectors’ strength underscores a flight to quality amid market turbulence.
Small and midcaps displayed ambivalence: Nifty Smallcap 100 rose modestly by 5.60 points to 17,056, while Nifty Midcap 100 fell 125 points to 59,597. This split often reflects selective fund flows.
Within Sensex constituents, Asian Paints, Infosys, BEL, Indigo, HCL Tech, ITC, TCS, Tech Mahindra, Sun Pharma, SBI, L&T, and Titan posted gains, driven by positive news flows and technical rebounds. Losers were led by Eternal, Tata Steel, ICICI Bank, UltraTech Cement, Bajaj Finance, Kotak Mahindra Bank, Trent, HDFC Bank, and NTPC.
Global cues were uneven: Tokyo and Hong Kong up, Bangkok down, key markets closed elsewhere. Weak commodities exacerbated the mood—Brent crude at $68.39 (-0.38%), WTI $63.39 (-0.27%). Comex gold slumped 1% to $4,969/oz, silver 2% to $75/oz.
Market participants are bracing for volatility, monitoring inflation data, corporate results, and international trade tensions that could sway sentiment through the day.